Data from: Residential development alters behavior, movement, and energetics in an apex predator, the puma

Human development strongly influences large carnivore survival and
persistence globally. Behavior changes are often the first measureable
responses to human disturbances, and can have ramifications on animal
populations and ecological communities. We investigated how a large
carnivore responds to anthropogenic disturbances by measuring activity,
movement behavior, and energetics in pumas along a housing density
gradient. We used log-linear analyses to examine how habitat, time of day,
and proximity to housing influenced the activity patterns of both male and
female pumas in the Santa Cruz Mountains. We used spatial GPS location
data in combination with Overall Dynamic Body Acceleration measurements
recorded by onboard accelerometers to quantify how development density
affected the average distances traveled and energy expended by pumas.
Pumas responded to development differently depending on the time of day;
at night, they were generally more active and moved further when they were
in developed areas, but these relationships were not consistent during the
day. Higher nighttime activity in developed areas increased daily caloric
expenditure by 10.1% for females and 11.6% for males, resulting in
increases of 3.4 and 4.0 deer prey required annually by females and males
respectively. Our results support that pumas have higher energetic costs
and resource requirements in human-dominated habitats due to human-induced
behavioral change. Increased energetic costs for pumas are likely to have
ramifications on prey species and exacerbate human-wildlife conflict,
especially as exurban growth continues. Future conservation work should
consider the consequences of behavioral shifts on animal energetics,
individual fitness, and population viability.